A Whisper On The Breeze
by Breathe Artistic
Summary: Four years ago Olivia "Liv" Lachapelle had everything. An up and coming career in the wrestling business, a fiance that she adored, and friends and family all around her. Yet one career threatening injury had things quickly crumbling down around her.
1. Chapter 1

"Alex, you're my brother. Blood related or no, why can't you just tell me what's going on?"

Alex Shelley smiled, his adopted little sister stood in front of him, her arms crossed and a sour look on her face. She's come into his family when they were both no older than seven and were 3 years apart in age. They grew close as the years went on and treated each other as any blood-siblings would. Alex patted his sister on her head, smiling as she scowled at him.

"Liv you'll find out soon enough, be patient sweetie."

She sighed, flopping down on the couch. "You know I hate surprises Alex. This is ridiculous."

"Will you just trust me, Liv? Have I ever steered you wrong?"

Liv started to reply but a knock came to the door, cutting her off. Alex grinned, knowing he'd dodged a smartass comment and jogged the short way to the door.

"Hey dude, what's going on?"

The voice from behind the door had Liv on her feet and behind her brother in a split second. She glared hard, tears springing to her eyes. She started up the stairs, gripping the railing tight.

"How could you, Alex! Why would you even think that this was okay?" Liv snarled from between gritted teeth.

"Livy..."

Liv scoffed, turning her back to her brother and dashing up the stairs. She slammed the door to her bedroom, leaning against it as tears slid from her eyes. Chris Sabin was the last person she wanted to see, her blood boiled with the thought that Alex had invited him to their home and thought it would sit well with her. She pushed away from the door and stood at the end of her bed, she knelt and after pushing several pairs of shoes aside, pulled out the box of memories that haunted her.

Such a pretty little box, all soft yellows and greens with cheerful pink and purple flowers, yet it held such painful memories. Liv pulled the top off, flinging it onto her bed and plucked the first item off the top.

__

You are cordially invited to celebrate the wedding of Olivia Edith Lachapelle and...

Liv laughed softly, remembering how, in all her anger at him, she'd blackened his name from the sole invitation she'd kept. She and Chris spent six years together, she'd been delighted when he asked her to marry him, ecstatic when her wedding dress (that now hung in shambles in the dress bag) arrived, and thoroughly devastated when he broke off the engagement. The box under her bed held the one most painful memory in her life. The small velvet box that contained the engagement ring Chris had given her. Several times she had the nagging desire to toss the trinket into the Detroit River, but never had the heart to actually go through with the action.

Outside there was a soft knock on the door and Liv quickly stuffed the invitation back into the box and slammed the lid on top. She wiped the few stray tears that fell down her cheeks and crossed her arms over her chest.

"Go away Alex. I am so not even in the mood to talk to you right now."

"Livy, sweetheart. I'm sorry," Alex said, sighing. "I just thought that maybe you guys should...I dunno try and talk to each other considering we're all going to be working together soon."

"Shh," Liv hissed. "Don't you dare bring that up if he's still out there Alex! Don't you remember what he did to me?! Don't you remember any of that? Why would I want to try and talk to him after that? Whether we're working together or not it's none of his goddamn business! The three of us may not even work together! He doesn't need to know."

"Livy..."

"Alex stop. I don't want to see him. I don't want to talk to him...I just want him to leave me alone." Liv sniffled.

"Are you crying Livy?"

"Of course I'm crying Alex! What the hell else should I be doing? You've just invited over the guy who asked me to marry him, then left me after the worst knee surgery of my life and broke my goddamn heart. So yeah, I'm definitely crying!"

Liv stomped over to he door, flinging it open. With the box tucked under her left arm she pulled in a deep breath, looking at her brother.

"Is he still here?" She demanded.

Alex's shoulders drooped and he nodded guiltily. "Yeah."

Liv nodded and pushed past him and headed back down the stairs. Alex called after her but jogged to catch up. Liv was crouched in front of the fireplace by the time he got downstairs and had shoved a starter log into the pit and was striking a long match.

"Livy... it's not cold enough for a fire hun." Alex said.

"Doesn't need to be," She replied stiffly. "I should have done this a long time ago."

"Sis...what are you doing?"

Liv ignored him and dug into the box again, pulling out the small black velvet box. With tears streaming down her cheeks she looked at Chris for the first time since he'd come to the door and tossed the box at him.

"Here. You can have that. I don't it want it."

Chris scrambled to catch the box before it hit the floor. He frowned and took a short step toward her.

"Liv...I'm sorry..."

Liv laughed bitterly. "You're sorry? You're _sorry_? I don't even want to hear that. Do you think that's going to make everything better?"

"I know it's not going to make anything better, Liv. But I am. I'm sorry. I was wrong," Chris plead. "I know you probably hate me..."

"You don't know the half of it. When I tore my ACL you promised me you'd be there for me the entire way through. You promised you'd take care of me and that you'd love me 'like you always had', but you didn't. I was a month out of surgery Chris, a _month_ and you said you couldn't take it anymore. That it was making our lives too different, you just couldn't _deal_ anymore. You left me. I still to this day don't think it was just because of the surgery, because I wasn't able to do everything I could have before. I don't know why and I don't care to know but you broke my heart Chris, and you don't even care..."

"I do care, Liv! I have always cared about you and loved you..."

"No! I've had enough of your lies Chris! If you cared about me then you wouldn't have left me!" Liv exclaimed.

Liv got to her feet, the box in her hands and turned towards the fireplace. Alex crossed the room to his sister in a few long strides and wrapped his arms around her before she chucked the entire box into the fire. Liv struggled, dropping the box in the process, it's contents spilling out onto the floor. The invitation fluttered to the ground by Chris' feet and he bent to pick it up, frowning.

"Listen. I didn't do this so you guys could fight. I'm sorry I sprung it on you this way, it wasn't fair. But...I was...I was hoping you two could talk again. Not even the way you were before, but just be civil to each other. We're all going to be working together really, really soon and you two have gotta get past at least a little bit of this animosity. For the sake of professionalism if nothing else." Alex said.

"I don't have a problem with professionalism." Liv and Chris said in unison.

Liv narrowed her eyes at her ex-fiancé. "I don't have a problem with being professional. I can separate those two lives. I'd just prefer if I weren't around him personally."

Chris sighed, and turned the invitation in his hand so the words were facing Liv. "Why?"

"I was mad Chris! I still am! Don't you understand that? Seeing you now is like rubbing salt in open wounds!"

Liv shook herself out of Alex's grip and brushed past Chris, heading up the stairs again. She spared a short look back and Chris was staring at the blackened invitation, his shoulders slumped in a defeated manner. He looked over his shoulder at her, his blue eyes sad.

"I know it's not enough, but I am so sorry," He whispered. "I... I still love you, Liv."

Liv tucked a strand of jet black hair behind her ear, shaking her head. "I just don't believe you."

As she headed up the stairs again, Alex sighed and knelt down to pick up the box and it's spilled contents.

"I'm sorry bro. I was really hoping for the best." He said.

"I know...it's not your fault," Chris replied. "Do you think she'd mind if I kept this?"

Alex looked up, shrugging. "I can't see why you'd want it. Your name is all blacked out, but I don't think she'd care."

Chris ignored the statement. "When did she decide to come back?"

"A few months ago. She talked to Scott, I guess he said the right words and wrangled her back in. I was for sure she was giving up wrestling for good," Alex replied. "She was just really broken up about the surgery and...all that happened with you guys..."

"How come you don't hate me for it, like she does?" Chris interrupted.

Alex shrugged. "I'm not gonna lie bro, I was pretty livid with you for a long time. I mean, we talked over it so many times. I know how sorry you are. It's not as easy getting her to see the same thing. She's my sister though and I'm doing what I can to help her. I never woulda tried this a few months ago, she woulda ripped both our heads off."

Chris chuckled, then sighed. "She's a spitfire. That's one of the things I've always loved about her."

Alex clapped Chris on the shoulder. "I know man. Give her time."

Upstairs, Liv sat on the floor of her bedroom, her knees drawn up to her chest, tears sliding down her cheeks. There was just a part of her that never wanted to forgive Chris for breaking her heart, yet there was also a part of her that wanted to keep him in her heart forever. She couldn't deny that they'd had wonderful times together and were so much in love before things went sour. Hearing Chris say that he still loved her made her heart soar and crack all the deeper at the same time. It'd been almost two years since they broke everything off and she knew that he'd never moved on to anyone else. Part of her thought that maybe he held out hope that there would be something between them again. Part of her laughed at the thought. If Chris had really loved her the way he said he did, he never would have left her to begin with. They would have been happily married by now and both enjoying their jobs.

After the injury and the shattering of her relationship with Chris, Liv decided she no longer had an interest in wrestling. It had brought her nothing but pain in recent times and she didn't want to endure it anymore. She refused to. Over time, her love for the sport waned further, to the point she couldn't even stand to watch it on television. She and Alex never talked about it and that pattern stuck for many long months before one day, her former trainer, Scott D'Amore called. Scott was someone that Liv trusted, admired, and respected and it seemed only he was able to break her from that shell and revive the love for her chosen sport. Having long been cleared from her injury, Liv threw herself back into training, hammering off any ring rust that had built up. She trained herself back into the condition she was in before the injury and was now just days away from entering Total Nonstop Action with her brother.

Liv sighed and pushed up to her feet again. Hearing the front door close, she slowly opened her bedroom door and crept down the stairs. Alex was standing with his back to her at the door and on the step sat the yellow and green box that continued to haunt her.

"I told him he could keep the invitation," Alex said. "I didn't think you'd care. I don't know why he'd want it though."

"You should have told him to take the whole box," Liv replied. "That fire still going?"

"No. I doused it. Ruined some good wood but there was no need to let it burn. Are you ever gonna forgive him?"

"I couldn't tell you." She replied softly.

"Why not? He still loves you." Alex turned, and motioned for his sister to come closer. He wrapped his arms around her when she got to him, kissing the top of her head. "I know you're hurting, and I don't know what I can do to make it better. I know you don't believe him but I wish you would. It's terrible having two people who are really important to me as family and friends so angry at each other. If I could take every ounce of pain you feel away so I'd never have to see those tears in my little sister's eyes again, I would. But I can't, baby. I can't. I wanna help you so bad, princess. You're my baby and you know that. I've been looking after you since you were six and that isn't about to stop."

Liv sniffled, tightening her arms around her brother's waist. "I know. It's just so hard Alex. I loved him so much and I just feel so _stupid_! I trusted him with everything, I gave him _everything_! He just threw it away like so much garbage. It hurts so bad."

Alex squeezed her tightly, kissing the top of her head again. "I know. I know."


	2. Chapter 2

Two weeks after her encounter at home with Chris, Liv and her brother Alex were in Orlando, Florida for Liv's first experience in the TNA iMPACT Zone. Her meeting with TNA president Dixie Carter had gone wonderfully just a month before and now Liv was officially a member of the TNA roster. Walking into the studio where iMPACT was filmed as a bit overwhelming for the young Knockout, she stayed close to Alex and did her best to avoid Chris like the plague. Unfortunately, around the studio it was extremely difficult to find Alex without Chris and vice versa, so Liv decided to socialize with a few of her fellow Knockouts in the women's lockeroom and get away from them both altogether. When she first entered the lockeroom, it was empty so she tossed her bag down and looked around a bit. Just a few minutes later the door swung open and a blonde girl walked through the door. She grinned at Liv, dropping her bag and walking over to her.

"Hey, you new here? I'm Taylor Wilde, nice to meet you!" She stuck out her and Liv shook it with a smile.

"Nice to meet you, too. I'm Liv Lachapelle."

"No kidding? I've heard about you. I'm so psyched you're here! C'mon! Let's hit catering, we need to talk."

Taylor grabbed Liv by the hand and tugged her out the door. Liv giggled and followed Taylor down the hallway towards the catering room. Liv sat down at a table while Taylor grabbed two water bottles and a small plate of fruit before joining her.

"So, curious. Where did you train?" Taylor asked.

"Can-Am in Windsor with my brother." She replied.

"Sweet! Who's your brother?"

"Alex Shelley," Liv grinned. "I'm adopted but still...he's my big brother and he's amazing."

"Oh right," Taylor smiled. "He's wicked cool. So you trained with Petey and Sabin and all them too, right?"

Liv barely contained a cringe at Chris' name but nodded. "Yeah. They're really great teachers. Petey especially. I wish he was still here, I would totally love to work with him."

"So I heard you were coming like, a year ago. Alex wouldn't stop talking about it. What happened?"

"Ah, I tore my ACL training one day. It was seriously miserable. I had to have surgery and was out of commission for a couple months..."

Liv trailed off as her gaze slid behind Taylor and Alex and Chris walked in the room, smiling and laughing. Taylor turned and waved the two over and it was all Liv could to do ask her not to. Chris visibly hesitated but Alex nudged him ahead, earning a glare from his sister. He gave her a look as if to say 'cut it out' and the two men joined the girls at the table. Alex plunked down next to his sister, throwing his arm around her.

"So I see you've met Miss Taylor Wilde." He grinned, rumpling Liv's hair.

"Stop Alex," Liv muttered, pushing him away. "Yeah. We were just talking about what took me so long to get here, since apparently my darling big brother likes to talk."

"Oh stop, you know I got excited when you decided to follow in my footsteps." Alex grinned and leaned closer to Taylor. "Whatever she said about me is a total lie."

Taylor laughed. "Man I can tell you two are trouble together. Probably more than you and Chris."

Chris chuckled. "I don't know if that's possible. To cause more trouble than Alex and I have...we're pretty famous for that."

"Shh! You're not making our case sound any better, Sabin! Cut that out!" Alex scolded jokingly.

Liv smiled and shook her head at her brother. "Alex you're always in some sort of trouble so I don't even know why you're trying to make a play for a clean record."

"Hey it doesn't hurt to try."

"So Liv," Taylor interrupted. "You were talking about that ACL injury before the guys came over. I mean I'm sure you don't wanna relive that but can I ask how it happened?"

"Oh, yeah. I was actually in the ring with Alex and we were practicing this wicked submission I wanted to learn and I guess I'd just had a lot of stress on my knee over the past months or so. I stepped over and _just_ turned wrong and I heard my knee pop and then it was like my entire leg was on fire. I mean it was terrible pain, I couldn't move my leg for the life of me. They carted me out of the gym and I had surgery the next day."

Absently, during her story, Liv's gaze drifted over to Chris who was sitting beside Taylor. She felt tears ringing her eyes and brushed them away quickly, looking back at Taylor. Her fellow Knockout looked confused, her eyes ping-ponging between her and Chris. Taylor bit her lip and cleared her throat.

"Hey girl, maybe we should head back to the lockeroom," Taylor stood and Liv quickly joined her. "See you guys later."

The two Knockouts hurried out of the catering room and back to the Women's lockeroom. Taylor pushed the door open and Liv followed, her face still sad and eyes still a little red.

"I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to bring up anything bad back there," Taylor blurted. "Oh man I'm so sorry!"

"No, no. It's not your fault. I just...it's...you shouldn't be apologizing. It's me. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have lost it like that."

"Is there something going on between you and Chris?" Taylor asked cautiously.

Liv snorted, dropping down onto a bench. Taylor shadowed her movement. "No. Not anymore. We...we were engaged. But we broke up."

"After your surgery I take it?"

The dark-haired girl swung her gaze over to the blonde beside her. "How'd you guess?"

"Just by the way you looked when you were telling the story. How you looked at him. It wasn't long was it?"

Liv sniffled. "Chris and I were together for six years. Engaged for a year, and he left a month after I had surgery."

Taylor's jaw dropped. "Are you serious?"

"Yeah. Alex invited him to our house two weeks ago because he thought we should talk, and try and get along a little better since we're all going to be working here, it didn't go so well. I'm just not ready to forgive him yet."

"Man, I'm really sorry Liv, I didn't mean to bring all that in," Taylor frowned. "Sometimes I just gotta keep my big mouth shut."

Liv waved it off. "It's okay. You couldn't have known. It's no big deal."

"So are you going to be part of that whole Motor City Machine Guns thing?"

"Of course. They jumped at a chance to toss a girl with the Guns that fit their image." Liv replied.

"No kidding. I'm sure they'd been trying to find a Knockout for their team for ages, but the scene's been a little...light as of late." Taylor grimaced. "It's been too much about The Beautiful People. We're all kind of sick of them, frankly."

Liv chuckled. "I can see. I've been watching."

"But there's some really cool things happening in the really near future. Knockouts tag team belts? Cool, right?" The blonde grinned.

"Seriously? That's pretty major. I wouldn't expect anything like that." Liv said.

"I know, but it's pretty rad. I'm excited!" Taylor grinned. "So anyway, since I made you feel all awkward in catering. Are you wrestling tonight?"

Liv waved off Taylor's first statement but nodded, grinning. "I am. Against Madison Rayne."

"Oh, cool. Well I'll be sending you good vibes from back here on your first match girl," Taylor grinned. "I know you're gonna kick serious ass!"

---

Later that afternoon, Liv was alone in the Knockouts lockeroom, having just changed into her ring gear. The butterflies were battering her insides and her hands were shaking with nerves. She took a deep breath, running her fingers through her long dark hair. In the past, when she was nervous before a match, she'd go to Chris, he'd hold her tight and console her, telling her everything would be fine. Silently savoring the pleasant memory, she sniffled and before she realized exactly what she was doing, her legs were carrying her towards the lockeroom Alex and Chris often shared with Jay Lethal and Consequences Creed. She knocked on the door, three loud raps, and exhaled slowly. The door opened and Chris was standing behind it. He was shirtless, wearing his wrestling trunks and a skull cap. Broken out of her memory, Liv raised her chin and fixed Chris with a glare.

"Is Alex in there?" She said simply.

"Yeah," Chris sighed, turning into the room. "Alex. It's Liv."

Chris disappeared into the room again with a lingering glance back at his ex-fiancé and a frown. Alex replaced him at the door, grinning at his sister.

"Excited for your match girl?"

"Nervous," Liv frowned. "Could you come out for a sec?"

Worry flitted across Alex's face and he stepped out of the door, pulling it shut. He pulled his sister into his arms, hugging her tightly. "What's up? Why are you so nervous?"

"I'm gonna choke, Alex!" Liv cried. "Or I'm gonna hurt myself again and make an idiot of myself on national television! You and Chris are gonna come down like you're supposed to and I'm gonna start crying when I see him and I'm gonna be a fucking moron..."

"Liv! Stop!" Alex gripped his sister's shoulders. "Stop that. You are not. You're going to do absolutely fine. You're not going to make a fool out of yourself, you're not going to hurt yourself, and you're not going to cry when you see Chris. You've done well so far so why would that make any difference? You didn't cry when you just now saw him. You're going to be okay."

"But I was. I was, before I came down here," Liv sniffled, wiping her eyes. "I was so nervous...and I just started thinking, how he was always so good to me before...when I was nervous. And he'd make everything okay, but that's never going to happen again. Ever! I just started walking and... and there he was at the door and...I just..."

Alex took Liv's cheeks between his hands and forced her to look at him, authoritatively then, he said: "Enough. You're overreacting. You're over thinking. Stop it or that's what's going to get you hurt. You've gotta turn off the negatives and chill out or you're gonna get yourself hurt. If you go into this with a clear head, you've got it, Livy. You know what you're doing and you've got a good head on your shoulders. Don't let it all fall apart now. You've worked too hard to get back to this point. Don't let it go."

Liv took a deep breath, backing out of Alex's grip. "You're right. You're right. I've just gotta calm down."

"Yeah and either talk to Chris, or stop thinking about him. Clearly, he's a big distraction for you, sis." Alex looked pointedly at the dark haired girl in front of him.

Liv folded her arms, gritting her teeth. "I have nothing to say to him."

Alex chuckled and turned back to the door, opening it. "I know you still love him Livy. You two either gotta talk about it and work things out, or get over each other."

Liv's jaw dropped open and Alex disappeared behind the door before she had a chance to retort. She let out a frustrated growl and stalked off towards the Knockouts lockeroom again to fix her makeup.

In another half-hour, Liv was standing behind the tunnel, about to enter the iMPACT Zone. She jumped from foot to foot and took several deep breaths while she waited for The Beautiful People to finish their entrance. Alex appeared suddenly behind her, resting his hands on her shoulders, making her jump. She spun and swatted her brother's shoulder, playfully growling at him. Alex gave her a quick hug as her music struck up across the arena and she took one last deep breath before heading through the tunnel.

***

"And her opponent, on her way to the ring from Detroit, Michigan. Liv Lachapelle!"

The newest TNA Knockout, clad in bright orange and black, spun out onto the ramp, taking a minute to strike a pose before heading down the ramp. The trio of blondes in the ring sneered at the raven-haired girl as she climbed up onto the apron and smiled out at the crowd.

"From what we understand, Taz, Liv Lachapelle is our newest Knockout acquisition." Mike Tenay said.

"She's a real knockout alright!" Taz laughed. "The Beautiful People don't seem too impressed though."

"What _are_ the Beautiful People impressed with, Taz?"

Liv grabbed the top rope and vaulted herself into the ring. The Beautiful People cackled between themselves, pointing and wrinkling their noses at the new Knockout. The opening bell sounded and referee Slick Johnson ushered Lacey Von Erich and Velvet Sky out of the six-sided ring. Madison and Liv met in the center of the ring, the blonde rolled her eyes at Liv and turned towards her partners, laughing. Liv seized the opportunity, grabbing Madison by the elbow and spinning her back around, slapping her hard across the face. Madison stumbled back, mouth hanging open. She charged at Liv but the dark-haired woman ducked out of the way, rolling back to her feet behind her. Madison tried again but Liv repeated her action and evaded the attempted clothesline. After the third missed hit, Madison stamped her feet yelling: "stay still!" and Liv clobbered her from behind with a dropkick.

"Liv is always just one step ahead of Madison Rayne and she doesn't like it one bit!" Tenay remarked.

Liv picked Madison up from the mat and gave her a hard elbow smash to the side of the head. She tossed Madison into the ropes and hit her with a one-legged dropkick as she rebounded and quickly went for a pin. The blonde kicked out after a two count and Liv quickly had her on her feet again. Liv chopped Madison across the chest and tossed her off the ropes again. This time, Madison ducked Liv's clothesline and retaliated with one of her own, knocking the dark-haired Knockout to the mat. Madison dropped and elbow on Liv and proceeded to sit on her stomach, grabbing her by the sides of her head and slamming her head into the mat repeatedly. The referee reprimanded Madison for pulling Liv's hair while the other members of the Beautiful People cheered her on. Madison got to her feet and landed a kick in Liv's ribs before posing for the crowd.

"Madison seems to be taking this match up pretty lightly. I'm not sure how good of an idea that is on her part." Mike Tenay said.

"Madison's one of the Beautiful People, of course she's confident she'll win," Taz said. "Nobody ever said it was smart to go about it that way though."

Before Madison finished pandering to the crowd, Liv was on her feet and waiting in a crouch. Velvet Sky alerted Madison to her waiting opponent and as she turned around, Liv sprang a her with a single-knee face breaker. The blonde hit the mat, hands flying up to her face and Liv gave her a few good stomps before pulling her over to the opposite side of the ring, away from her partners. Liv ducked out of the ring and used the ropes as a slingshot, propelling herself over the top rope and landing in a leg drop right across Madison's throat. Liv quickly rolled into a cover but Lacey Von Erich had sprinted that side of the ring and lifted Madison's foot onto the bottom rope and was frantically pointing it out to the referee. Liv jumped up, arguing with the referee briefly before aiming a kick at Lacey. The taller blonde danced out of the way, mocking Liv before rejoining Velvet on the other side of the ring. From behind, Madison knocked Liv off her feet with a smash to the back of the head. She flipped Liv over onto her back and posed again for the crowd before attempting a leg drop but Liv rolled out of the way just in time. The dark-haired woman sprang to her feet, grabbing Madison she flipped her over with a snapmare, then landed a hard kick into her back. Liv went to spring off the ropes but Velvet Sky grabbed her ankle, sending her crashing face first into the mat. Madison crawled up to her feet and pulled Liv up, planting her with a DDT.

"Ouch! A big time DDT from Madison Rayne, this is gotta be it!" Taz said.

Madison fell into a lackadaisical cover, grinning over at her partners. The smiles didn't last long as Liv kicked out after a count of two. Madison complained to the referee who only shrugged at her and told her the count was only good for two. While Madison argued, Liv laid in wait and when the blonde refocused her attention she received a hard, high kick to the temple for her troubles. Liv hit Madison with a couple of hard stomps before flipping her face down on the mat. She grabbed her opponent's arms and placed her foot in the middle of her back, slamming the blonde down hard. The crowd cheered while the other Beautiful People were in an uproar. While she was down, Liv grabbed Madison's legs and locked her into a cross-legged STF, an extremely painful submission maneuver that not only applied pressure to the legs, but the neck and back as well. After only seconds, Madison tapped out. Liv's music played as she dropped the hold and got to her feet, the referee raising her hand in victory.

"Here is your winner, Liv Lachapelle!"

Before Liv's first win celebration really kicked off, Velvet Sky attacked her from behind, knocking the victor to the ground. Lacey and Madison joined the assault, stomping on her as well. Lacey pulled Liv up from the mat, holding her prone and open for an attack. However, before any more damage could be done, the crowd burst into cheers and two familiar forms came sprinting down the ramp.

"What! That's Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin! What in the world are they doing!" Mike Tenay yelled.

The three blondes scattered quickly as the Guns hit the ring. Alex was quickly by Liv's side, pulling her up from the mat while Chris guarded the ring from any type of return attack. The Machine Guns' music played as the Beautiful People retreated from ringside and the cameras cut for commercial. Alex and Chris walked Liv out of the ring and backstage, met up with Lauren who had her microphone at the ready to question the trio.

"Alex Shelley, Chris Sabin, everyone's buzzing, everyone's wondering. What exactly was going on out there?" She said.

Alex threw his arm around the new Knockout's shoulders and grinned. "Well, we couldn't exactly let those three blonde bimbos gang up on our girl, could we? I mean of course we can't lay a hand on those skanks, and honestly why would we want to, but there's no rule saying we can't scare them so they'll scatter like the roaches they are."

"Absolutely. So as I'm sure you all heard, our friend Liv here, just like us, was made in Detroit," Chris grinned and pointed out their hometown on his palm. "So it was only natural that the most talented girl from the Motor City join up with the most talented tag team from the Motor City."

"As everyone can also see, she's got more talent in her little finger than all three of "the Beautiful People"," Alex made quotes with his fingers in the air. "Put together."

Liv smiled, reaching out to wrap an arm around Sabin's waist. "So TNA, consider yourself warned. The Motor City is taking over."

***

Following the interview segment, Liv snatched her arm away from Chris and turned into Alex's chest, squeezing him. He picked her up off the ground and gave her a swing, laughing.

"See! I told you that you were gonna be just fine! You did amazing out there!"

Liv pulled back, smiling brightly. "Thanks! You were so right Alex. Once I got out there, everything just went away. I wasn't nervous, or scared or anything!"

"You did great out there Liv," Chris said quietly, walking away. "Congratulations."

Liv stared after him, her eyebrow raised. "He heard what you said earlier, didn't he Alex?"

Alex whistled innocently, starting after his partner. Liv aimed a kick at Alex's calf, but he jumped out of the way, grinning at her. Liv ran after him, pushing him in the back as she caught up. Alex laughed and caught his sister in a headlock. She quickly rolled out of the hold and twisted Alex's arm up behind his back. Alex ducked, moving backwards and turned out of the hold, grabbing Liv around the waist and tossing her over his shoulder.

"Oh this is not even fair! Put me down Alex!"

"No way kiddo. You could have at least said thank you to him. He was trying to be nice."

Liv groaned. "Why are you forever trying to get us to talk! Neither of us have anything to say to each other so why are you forcing it?"

"Speak for yourself..."

"Alex hasn't anyone told you that you can't manhandle the Knockouts like that, especially the new ones." A voice behind them drawled.

Alex spun, and Liv yelped, tucking her head down so she didn't smash it into the open door nearby. "Watch it!"

"Oh, hey AJ," Alex grinned. "Nah, it's cool. This one is my sister. I'm allowed to rough her up."

AJ laughed as Alex set Liv back on the ground. She punched him solidly in the arm, scowling at him.

"Watch out for open doors next time you wanna pull something like that, eh Alex?"

"Hey congratulations on your match tonight," AJ said, smiling warmly. "I watched. Youre talented."

Liv blushed. "Thank you. I really appreciate that."

"Any time. Good luck with everything. I'm really glad that we've got some new talent around here," AJ said. "But I gotta get going. I'll see you guys around."

AJ waved at the siblings as he walked away and Alex threw his arm around his sister's shoulders again.

"Now, like I was saying. Chris has a _lot_ he wants to say to you..."

"I don't want to hear it." Liv said stubbornly.

"That's the problem, Livy. You're being such a hard head about it. He just wants to apologize," Alex continued quickly before she could interrupt. "And I know you feel like that's not enough, but he's so sorry. He doesn't know what it's gonna take to get you to talk to him again, but that's all he wants Livy. He just wants to talk to you."

Liv dropped her eyes to the ground, saying nothing. Alex sighed softly and kissed his sister on the cheek, heading back to the lockeroom. Liv sighed and headed back to the Knockout's lockeroom, praying it would be empty and she'd have some time to think.


	3. Chapter 3

Three weeks later, now a trio, Motor City Machine Guns found themselves embroiled in a feud with The British Invasion and alternating members of the Beautiful People. Alex and Chris were battling for the TNA tag team championships and Liv was busy fighting off the trio of mean girls - joined often times by the Knockouts tag team champions, Taylor Wilde and Sarita.

While in the ring, things were going well for the three of them, outside the ring Liv was as stubborn as ever on the subject of talking with Chris again. Alex was attempting for the sanity of the group to at least get the two on speaking terms but Liv just didn't seem to understand why Alex wouldn't let her be with her broken heart. Amidst the on-going drama with her ex-fiancé, Liv became close friends with fellow Knockout Taylor Wilde. Taylor, however, seemed to be on Alex's side of trying to get Liv and Chris speaking again.

"As a woman, I completely understand that you wanna be alone with all this for a while Liv, I really do," Taylor was saying as the two walked into the house Liv shared with Alex. "But, for the sake of professionalism..."

"It's not about professionalism Tay! I don't have a problem with that at all. I just don't see why you guys are trying to push us back into something we're not ready for." Liv pouted, dropping down on the couch.

Taylor laughed and sat down next to her. "It's not that you're both not ready for it dear. It's that _you're_ not ready for it. And I totally understand that. After everything you two have been through, I understand you not wanting to converse with him, but the point is, because you guys are stuck being so close together so often, you're going to have to. I mean like it or not, Chris is one of your colleagues, and your partner. Whether you want to admit it or not, I personally think you still have feelings for him."

Liv frowned, looking affronted. "I do not."

"Well you're certainly not over him, sweetie." Taylor said matter-of-factly.

Liv scowled. "And what if I did? Hypothetically speaking, of course."

"Hypothetically speaking, if you did? I wouldn't blame you! You and Chris were together for, what, six years you said? That's a long time to be around one another and that's a long time to have feelings for someone. I mean there had to be something significant there for you two to get engaged and be that close to marriage. If you still had feelings for him Liv, honestly I would blame you. He was a big part of your life." Taylor replied.

"I just don't think I'll ever understand why he left..." Liv whispered.

Taylor put her arm around Liv's shoulders, giving her a squeeze. "The only way you're going to find that out is if you ask him. Which means you'd have to talk to him."

Liv sighed. "I know. Like I told you before though, I just don't know if I'm ready to forgive him yet."

"It's not about forgiving him yet, that will come in time, if you decide to, but to get to that point, you have to open that door. If you don't, you're going to give yourself the excuse to hate him forever."

Liv stayed quiet for a long stretch. Taylor glanced over at her and the dark haired girl had hung her head slightly, and folded her arms over her chest. Taylor poked her upper arm, offering a smile when Liv looked over at her. Liv managed a weak one back, sighing heavily.

"I just feel like...it's not right that I still love him. After everything that we've been through, why should I still have feelings for him? I just don't understand why..."

"I told you earlier girl! You two were together for six years. That's a _long_ time. You've had some serious feelings for him. You two have no doubt shared some serious times together, good and bad and everything in between. You were in love with him for a long time. Feelings that strong that have been around for that long just don't flutter away as soon as the relationship is over. It takes time to get over things like that, especially if you don't want to." Taylor explained.

"I hate that I still love Chris. I just feel like I shouldn't." Liv whispered.

"Honey, if you still love him, then you still love him. Clearly he has feelings for you, too. You guys just have to be open to sharing that with each other. If something comes of it then, it was meant for you guys to get back together, if not, then you can't say that you denied yourself your own feelings, y'know what I mean?"

Liv sighed heavily. "You're right. You're totally right."

---

Two days later Liv sat in the lockeroom along with Taylor and Sarita. The Knockouts Tag Team champions were chatting away about their upcoming match. Liv was pulling a brush through her hair when Taylor finally turned to her and grinned.

"So, did you think about what we talked about the other day, girl?"

Liv screwed up her face. "Maybe."

"No more being stubborn remember?" Taylor grinned.

"Right, right," Liv shook her head. "I'm gonna go see if I can track down Alex. I'll see you girls later."

Liv dropped her brush into her bag and hopped up from her seat and strode out the door. After a few short minutes of searching, she located her brother sitting in the stands with Chris. Liv sighed and headed up to the pair. She approached, coming up behind Chris, and Alex waved to her. Liv waved back as Chris turned to see who was coming. Liv took a seat in the row above them, propping her feet up on the backs of their chairs.

"Hey."

"What's up girl? Are you okay?" Alex laughed.

"I'm fine, why wouldn't I be fine?" Liv blurted.

"Because you and Chris are both sitting here and you haven't had a meltdown yet..."

"Shut up." Liv kicked the back of Alex's chair. "I just came to see what you were up to."

Chris raised an eyebrow and stood up, sighing. "I'll just...go."

Chris had taken several steps away from the pair, leaving them both open-mouthed before Liv jumped up, closing the distance between them.

"Wait," Liv reached out and grabbed his elbow. "Chris...we should talk."

He turned to her, eyes wide and confused. "What?"

"We should talk. The two of us."

"Are you kidding me!" Alex shouted. "You'll listen to Taylor but not your own brother?"

Liv spun towards him. "Shut up, you!"

Chris chuckled. "Yeah...we should talk. Definitely."

"Okay well..."

"How about later. After the taping. We'll...go get something to eat or something." Chris said.

Liv nodded. "Okay...sounds good."

Chris gave her a weak smile and waved to Alex, heading down the empty row. Liv took a deep breath and turned back to her brother, biting her bottom lip.

"So. What _finally_ made you give in and come to your senses?" Alex crossed his arms, smirking at her.

Liv scowled. "I had some time to think, is all. I guess you're right and this whole thing with he and I not speaking is a little...juvenile. I may not be ready to forgive him yet...but the only way that's _ever_ going to happen is if I open that door to begin with. I'll hear what he has to say. I probably won't like it, but I'll hear it."

Alex grinned. "That's my girl! I'm proud of you."

"Yeah, yeah," Liv swatted him across the shoulder. "Now we've got a match tonight. You oughta be getting ready, don't you think?"

Alex groaned and pushed himself up from his seat. Liv shook her head and followed her brother down the aisle and back out the Impact Zone. The siblings parted ways as Liv headed back to the Knockout's lockeroom to dress for her match. She, along with both Alex and Chris were facing Brutus Magnus and Doug Williams of the British Invasion and The Beautiful People's Velvet Sky. It wasn't often that TNA booked mixed gender matches so this was an opportunity for all three of the Guns to shine.

Fending off Taylor's questions of whether she'd spoken to Chris yet or not, Liv gathered her ring gear and quickly disappeared to change. Taylor pouted until Liv conceded to tell her that they were having dinner together after the television taping and her blonde companion punched the air happily. Taylor, it seemed, was more excited about the meeting than Liv.

"You're welcome to go in my place if you like," Liv said, on her way out the door before the match. "Although I'm sure he wouldn't appreciate the switch."

Liv met Alex and Chris at the tunnel, their opponents already in the ring. The three looked between one another, nodding a good luck to each other before their music began to play.

---

"And their opponents, from Detroit, Michigan. Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin the Motor City Machine Guns, and Liv Lachapelle!"

The trio headed down the ramp, all three clad in some form of blue and black. Alex and Chris vaulted into the ring while Liv posed on the apron between the two of them. Entrance finished, the bell sounded and the match started with Sabin and Magnus. Sabin quickly took control, dodging most of the attempted strikes from Magnus with his quickness and landing several kicks on his adversary. He made a quick tag to Alex who tossed Magnus into the ropes and hit him with a standing dropkick and went for a pin, only to get a two count. Back on his feet, Alex landed a hard kick into Magnus' ribs and followed it up with a quick dropkick to the side of the head. Alex hit the ropes, but got hung up by Williams on the outside and he dropped to the mat while Magnus gained his feet again and tagged in his partner. Williams landed a hard series of elbow strikes to the side of Alex's head before hitting him with a strong uppercut. Alex hit the mat and Williams went for a pin but Shelley kicked out after two. Williams pulled Alex up from the mat, snapping off two suplexes in rapid succession, going for another pin. This time Chris broke up the pin. The referee shoved Sabin back into his corner, taking his eyes off the match and allowing for a double team on Alex to go unseen.

Alex fought out with kicks for both men and quickly rolled to his corner and tagged in Liv. The dark-haired Knockout ducked into the ring, standing her ground as Williams sized her up laughingly, patting her on top of the head. Clearly affronted, Liv pulled back her arm and slapped Williams across the face as hard as she could. Williams glowered at her but was forced to his corner by the referee and Velvet Sky stepped into the ring. She immediately got in Liv's face, shoving her. Liv stumbled but came back with a hard slap for Velvet.

"Now all she needs is one for Brutus Magnus! Then she'll be three for three." Taz laughed.

Liv grabbed Velvet in a side headlock but Velvet elbowed out of it and grabbed Liv by the hair, slamming her down to the mat. The referee admonished her but Velvet waved it off, stomping on Liv's midsection. Velvet dropped an elbow on her before pulling her up from the canvas and hitting her with an elbow to the side of her head. Velvet kicked her in the stomach, doubling her over and hitting her with a DDT. Velvet went for a pin but Liv kicked out after a two count. Liv blocked Velvet's attempt at a clothesline and hit her with a neckbreaker. Liv picked up Velvet again and whipped her into one of the six ring posts but Velvet reversed it. Liv jumped to the second rope, turned and launched herself at Velvet, hooking her with a swinging DDT. Liv went for a quick cover but Brutus Magnus ran interference, grabbing her ankle and pulling her off the pin. Both the Guns jumped into the ring, along with Williams and collided immediately. During the scuffle in which the men tossed each other to the outside and were brawling around the ring, Lacey Von Erich - who'd been on the outside with Madison Rayne and Rob Terry - grabbed Velvet's usual bottle of perfume and snuck into the ring, spraying Liv in the face with it. Liv yelped, rubbing her eyes and Velvet hit her with a backcracker, going for the pin and gaining the win.

"And your winners, Velvet Sky and the British Invasion!"

---

Following the match, Liv scooted quickly back to the Knockout's lockeroom, meeting Taylor there. The blonde grinned at her and flailed her hands.

"Are you excited?" She squeaked. "What are you wearing?"

"No, not remotely," Liv replied. "And I have no idea what I'm wearing. We're not going on a date, we're just going to get some food and talking things out. It's not a date."

"Still! You should wear something cute," Taylor reasoned. "Make him think about what he's missing."

Liv chuckled, rolling her eyes. "I'm really not interested in being cute for him."

"So don't be cute for him, be cute for yourself. You're adorable, Liv and you should always be cute." Taylor giggled.

With a laugh, Liv grabbed her bag and dug around in it for an outfit. She disappeared into the adjoining bathroom to change. When she returned she was wearing a white baby-doll dress with a black lace overlay and white peep-toe ankle boots. She dumped her ring gear into her bag and pulled her hairbrush out, running it through her long black hair.

"Girl!" Taylor exclaimed. "You look great!"

"This isn't too much is it? I've worn this dress around him before," Liv babbled. "I mean it's not saying too much, is it? Should I just wear jeans and a t-shirt?"

Taylor grabbed Liv's upper arms, giving her a small shake. "Liv! Stop! You're a woman, you're allowed to get all dolled up just because you want to. You look great. It's not too much, it's just casual enough. It's cute and feminine and those shoes are adorable and you have to let me borrow them one day."

Liv giggled. "Only if you can fit a size seven girl."

"Oh I knew we'd the best of shoe buddies...along with being besties!" Taylor smiled, high-fiving Liv.

The dark-haired Knockout went to reply but there was a knock on the door. Taylor grinned and dashed to open the door, Liv lunged forward to grab her but the blonde danced away from her grip and pulled the door open.

"Hi!" Taylor chirped happily.

"H-hey. Umm, is Liv here?"

Liv held back a smile at the nervousness in Chris's voice. She appeared at Taylor's shoulder and smiled slightly.

"Hey."

"Hey. So I wanted to see if you wanted to head out now. Alex said he'd catch a ride with Austin. I'd be happy to take you home afterwards." Chris said, running his hands over his hair.

"Oh. Yeah, sure. That'd be great," Liv said. "I'll just get my stuff then."

Liv disappeared behind the door again and grabbed her bag. She bid Taylor goodbye and headed off with Chris.

"Hey, let me get that for you," He held his hand out for her bag. "You look really beautiful. I wouldn't want you to mess up your pretty dress."

"Oh. Oh you don't have to do that. I'm okay."

"Please. It's...the least I can do." Chris said, eyes hopeful.

Liv sighed lightly and handed Chris her bag. He easily hitched it up onto his shoulder with his bag. She swapped her purse to the opposite arm and gave Chris a small smile.

"Thanks."

"No problem." He said.

The two walked in silence until they reached Chris's car. Liv waited as Chris dumped their bags in the trunk. He unlocked the doors and Liv ducked into the passenger seat while Chris hopped into the driver's seat. Liv looked over at him as they pulled out of the garage, smiling a bit.

"You look nice." She bit her lip, looking away from Chris and dropping her eyes to her lap.

Alex must have gotten to him, told him to wear something decent - as opposed to those brown pants he was partial to - if he was trying to make a good impression on Liv. Chris was dressed in a pair of dark blue jeans and a light blue button down with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. His hair was combed and clean and it reminded her of the times they spent together just a year earlier.

"Thanks," He smiled. "You really...look really gorgeous. I always did like that dress on you."

Liv blushed. "Thank you."

"So...where did you wanna go?"

"Hmm? Oh, it doesn't matter. Wherever you like." Liv answered.

Chris nodded and the ride continued in silence. A few minutes later, Chris pulled into a small seafood restaurant that was all too familiar to the former couple. It was a place they once frequented together when they were a couple and in Orlando for work. Liv stiffened in the passenger seat, biting her lip.

"Why did you choose this place?" She asked tightly.

"Because it's familiar...I thought it would be comfortable. A place we were accustomed to." Chris said. "I mean if you'd rather go somewhere else..."

"No, no it's fine."

Chris nodded and the two got out of the car. Liv followed Chris into the restaurant and were seated immediately. The restaurant wasn't busy, but then again it never was. It was a quaint little place that the two had discovered on a random drive through town. It was slightly out of the way but always offered fresh, delicious, and perfectly prepared food. After ordering their drinks and an appetizer, Chris sat back in his chair and sighed heavily.

"I guess we have a lot to talk about."

Liv scanned the dining room quickly, thankful for the slightly secluded table and nodded. "We do."

"Liv I don't even know where to start." Chris said.

"You could start by answering the only question I've been asking you for a year," Liv said softly. "Why? Why did you leave?"

"I got scared, and I know that's not exactly the reason you want to hear but it's the honest to God truth. I got so scared that I wasn't going to be able to do everything for you that I was supposed to do. I got so scared that I was going to be a shitty husband...that I was gonna do something so stupid and bad and you'd leave me. I got so scared that I didn't know what I was doing, and I didn't want to fail you. You mean the entire world to me and I wanted to be able to give you everything. I was so scared that I was going to fail...and hurt you after we got married that I...so wrongfully thought that leaving before the wedding was better. That if I left before I fucked up on such a big commitment that it would save you some hurt. Now I know how completely wrong I was."

"But...why after the operation, Chris? Why?" Liv said, thanking the waitress as she sat down their drinks.

"When you got hurt I was completely devastated. I didn't know what to do..." Chris paused as the waitress returned to give them their appetizers and take their orders. He waited until she was a good distance away before continuing. "I couldn't help you. There was nothing I could do and I panicked, and to me that was like...solidifying the paranoid idea in my head that I wasn't going to be able to take care of you. After I left...I felt like a complete moron. I knew that was the time you needed me the most and I was stupid enough to leave you. That was one of the most intense injuries that you possibly could have suffered and I bailed when you needed me. In that moment that I made that decision, I wasn't thinking about that and it's the worst thing I've ever done. It's my biggest regret in life."

Liv sipped her drink and stayed silent for a long moment before finally speaking. "Why didn't you just talk to me about it? Chris we were together for six years, we were supposed to be able to talk about anything together. We were supposed to be able to trust each other and confide in each other. You should have just told me and we could have talked about it! You have no idea how much I was looking forward to being your wife Chris. You have no idea how much I wanted that. And everything we had done! Invitations and the venue and rings and everything! It was all done and I was so excited. We were just weeks away and then I got hurt and I could accept that the wedding had to be postponed until I could walk properly again. Then you left me? I needed you so bad, you were my hope. You made everything okay. And then you were just gone."

Another short pause occurred as the waitress brought their food. Liv unwrapped her silverware and laid her napkin in her lap. She pushed her pasta around the bowl, but dropped her fork, food uneaten. Chris toyed with a French fry from his fish and chips meal, breaking it in half, dropping one half to the plate and eating the other.

"I'm so, so sorry Liv. I was wrong and I was stupid. I never, ever meant to hurt you this badly. I love you so much, even to this day. I've never stopped loving you and caring for you. I never will. I know that what I did was wrong and that sorry won't fix the pain I've caused you but...I so deeply and sincerely apologize. I will do whatever it takes to make it up to you."

"I don't trust you, Chris...not right now, and you have to know that." Liv interjected.

"I know, and I deserve that. I love you and I never want to lose you. I will do whatever it takes to gain your trust again...just...give me a chance." Chris said.

Liv stared at Chris for a few seconds before dropping her eyes to her food. She took a deep breathe before looking up again. "I'll give you a chance. But it's not going to immediately be the way it used to be. We're going to have to learn to be friends again."

"Would you...could you ever, want to get back to where we were. Could you love me again?" Chris said softly.

"I...I never stopped loving you Chris. It took me a long time, I... until every recently for me to admit to myself that I still loved you. But...it's going to take a hell of a lot longer for me to decide whether I want a relationship with you again."


End file.
